NEW YORK–Mr. Naeem Baig has been elected as the ameer of the Islamic Circle of North America for 2013-2014 by a majority vote of its members. Mr. Baig served as the Secretary General of the Islamic Circle of North America from 2000 to 2004, and later from 2006 to 2008.

Mr. Baig played a major role in strengthening ICNAâ€™s Interfaith Relations Department. During his time as the Secretary General, ICNA became member of many Interfaith organizations, like Religions for Peace USA and National Muslim Christian Initiative. Mr. Baig served as the consultant on the â€˜Study on Christian-Muslim Relationsâ€™, sponsored by the Department of Interfaith Relations of the Presbyterian Church (USA). He also co-chaired the â€˜National Muslim-Christian Initiativeâ€™.â€ He is also member of the Taskforce on Global Initiative on Faith, Health and Development.

Dr. Iqbal Ahmed leads study on adult stem cell breakthrough

University of Nebraska Medical Center officials say researchers there have devised a new way to create stem cells that could cure several conditions causing blindness.

A team led by ophthalmology and visual sciences professor Iqbal Ahmad has devised a way to turn adult limbal stem cells from the cornea into cells similar to powerfully regenerative embryonic stem cells in animals.

The team has received $1.48 million from the National Institutes of Health. Ahmad has four years to prove the strategy works in mice.

If it does, he would test it in monkeys and then humans.

The university says the new cells can generate retinal progenitor cells that could potentially cure conditions such as glaucoma and age-related macular degeneration.

The work builds off that of Drs. John B. Gurdon and Shinya Yamanaka, who won this yearâ€™s Nobel Prize in science for their discovery that mature cells can be reprogrammed into immature cells that can be turned into all tissues of the body.

The clinic takes place every second Sunday of the month and will also feature free health screenings.

The clinic is provided by ICNA Relief and MCS.

For information, contact Zulfiqar Khan at 951-454-6265 or Rezaur Rahman at 562-500-2042.

$150 grant awarded to Texas Muslim Womenâ€™s Foundation

PLANO,TX–Harold Simmons Foundation has granted $150,000 to Texas Muslim Womenâ€™s Foundation as an investment in its mission to empower, promote and support Muslim women and their families in North Texas. The three-year unrestricted grant is the largest that Harold Simmons Foundation has made to the growing social service organization, which it has supported since its inception in 2005.

Serena Simmons Connelly, executive vice president of the Harold Simmons Foundation, was instrumental in bringing the grant to fruition. Said Connelly, â€œWithout the leadership of an organization like Texas Muslim Womenâ€™s Foundation, mainstream agencies have limited access to these women and their families. Together, we can make our community stronger by ensuring people of all backgrounds and cultures are safe and have access to the resources they need.â€

â€œThis grant from Harold Simmons Foundation is such an important endorsement of Texas Muslim Womenâ€™s Foundation and the work we do with both American-born and immigrant Muslim women, whose lives are deeply intertwined with the well-being of the North Texas community,â€ said Hind Jarrah, executive director of the nonprofit organization.

Texas Muslim Womenâ€™s Foundation provides education, outreach, charitable and social services to the underserved population of Muslim women and their families in the greater Dallas area.

In December 2010, the Dallas Peace Center honored the Foundation as the 2010 Peacemaking Organization of the Year in honor of its groundbreaking domestic violence services, working with both mainstream shelters and Islamic organizations to address the specific needs of the underserved population of Muslim women and their children.

The organization, founded on the heels of the September 11 attacks in New York, places a strong focus on interfaith activities and increasing mutual understanding across all sectors of the community. Texas Muslim Womenâ€™s Foundation serves both Muslims and those of other faiths who are in need and request assistance.

In addition to these programs, Texas Muslim Womenâ€™s Foundation provides case management services to connect families with area resources and creates opportunities for Muslim youth to serve as volunteer ambassadors in the greater community.